The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-03-03
HEART DISEASE THE CAUSE.
Death OF a Fine IIfppopotamus NJ
tho Geological Garden In
Philadelphia.

Ing IOOlOSiCui Suiuou hao hiee WE
another misfortune, says Ahe Phiiadet.
phia Times. FL Mehdi, the popular hip
popotamus, is dead. and the society is
out about 50, 600 by his loss. He died
last Thursday, post mortem was held
on him on Friday, and his carcass was
presented to the Academy of Natural
Sciences yesterday. He died of fatty
degeneration of the heart. FL Mehdi
was one of the finest specimens of his
species in captivity. He was b years
old, and was imported by the society
direct from Egypt three years ago. Up
to the time of his death he was appar-
emily in the best health-eating, drink
ing. and taking his usual exercise in his
tank without evincing the slightest in
disposition. and was growing so fast
that arrangements had been made to
enlarge his tank.
A few minutes before his death he
mad been bathing, and when found
dead his body was half in and half out
of the water.
His keeper had not been away from
him ten minutes when his attention was
attracted by terrible connection in the
elephant house, where the hippopota.
mus was kept. When he arrived at the
house the elephants were loudly trump
citing and lashing the heavy iron bars
with their trunks, and old Pete, the
rhnoceros, was tearing around his apart
ment at Il terrible rate, snoring like
wild bull and furiously beating the bars
with his head. As soon as it was ascer-
tanned that the huge animal was dead,
Supt. Brown was notified and DR.. Chap
man sent for On Friday morning, by
the aid of block and tackle ten men
raised the carcass to truck and con-
veyed it to the barnyard of the garden,
where Dr. Chapman dissected it.
Tho huge carcass which was nine
feet long, four feet high, and over a
tn ousand pounds in weight, was turn
ed over on its back and the throat slit to
ascertain If it had choked to death.
The wind-pipe was found to be all
right, but when the heart was reached
the condition of the blood revealed the
fact that death was caused by heart
disease. DR.. Chapman then took the
heart and lungs out, and found that
the left side of the heart was covered
with blubber, which choked up all
the pores. The heart was about the
size of bcefs heart six inches in d.
ameter, weighing about five pounds,
The right side of the heart where the
blood was received was in a healthy
condition and fresh looking and red;
the left de- from which the blood was
pumped into the lungs, was completely
covered with small blubber, which
had suddenly closed up the small cells
and prevented respiration, in exactly
the same way that the disease act
upon human beings.
The brain was remarkably small in
proportion to the size of the head,
Weighing only one and one-half pounds,
but was IN perfect condition. 1t was
taken away by DR.. Chapman for n
closer examination. The hide on most
parts of the body was one and hall
inches thick, but rs flexible rs rubber
and without blemish. Under the fore
legs and the upper part of the breast
it was as white as snow and as soft as
kid, being less than half an inch in
thickness. DR.. Chapman attributed
the disease to worriment occasioned BY
confinement rs the animal, excepting
his heart affection. was in splendid
condition. his digestive organs being
especially healthy. Yesterday after
noon six stalwart keepers, assisted By
Snakekeeper Thompson. the artist OF
the garden. and Headkeeper Byrne,
moved the handsome tapir Carrie into
the vacant apartment of the Hippopo'
tamus.
Keeper Pendergast broke down com.
pletely and cried like boy when he
removed the two large wooden balls
with which FL Mehdi used to amuse
himself while in the water. Next Ia
old Pete, the rhinoceros. the hippopo-
tamus was Keeper Pendegasts favor
lite. II old Pete should die the keeper
said his heart would break. The tapii
was rather shy of her new quarters al
first, and carefully felt her way down
the steps into the tank. Her old tank
was very small and shallow, and
she was considerably surpr sed when
she went in over her head in the new
tank. She took to it kindly, however
and had been in but few minutes be-
fore she had rcconciled Keeper Fender.
CAST to his loss by her funny antics, one
of which was jumping two or three feet
out of the water and diving out of sight
Before night the two wooden balls had
been returned to the apartment and
Carrie was knocking one of them all
around the tank. Carrie will occupy
the tank until the arrival of a new hip